Frykid’s school (Loomis) does not offer driver’s ed but I’m told there is a place close to the school that some students go to. I don’t know whether Frykid should do it during the school year or just take out two weeks out of the summer to do an intense course.
Just curious as to what other folks have done for driver’s ed for boarders. Thoughts?
My daughter just completed a week of drivers ed classes this week. She will be getting her permit in Jan on a Weds afternoon when they have no classes. We will do some diving classes in March during break and June after school. Then hopefully a license in July.
Many of the kids at DS school used a driving school that had arrangements with his school. As it was a different state, it didn’t work for us. Did it right after school ended at home with a local driving school. (NJ requires 6 hours with NJ driving school to get a permit, so no flexibility. ) I would let my kid take the lead on it. (Was surprised at how little interest many kids had in learning to drive. Yet another thing that did not echo my own experience. )
Mine took a week long class at home one winter break and did driving lessons over breaks. One issue with driving lessons at school is that they are supposed to practice between lessons.
Practicing between lessons depends on the state. In NJ, you can’t practice between lessons because you aren’t actually issues a permit until the 6 hours of driving lessons are completed. My D did her 6 hours of behind the wheel instruction, got her permit and then refused to drive. We got her extra lessons over the summer and then she spent the summer practicing.
@carpoolingma - interesting. I should have also mentioned that DS goes to school in our state. If you are out of state that can be different. In MA you can’t take driving lessons until you have your permit and several schools suggest 5-10 hours with parents before your first lesson. Driving lessons are 12 hours behind the wheel and 6 hours observing other student drivers.
In 8th grade my D was already pushing for learners permit but once she was in BS it became a complete nonissue. They offered drivers ed on Sundays & she did not want to give up her weekend time. The scheduling for summer drivers ed at home interfered greatly with working & it did not matter enough to her to try to make it work.
She is now a college freshman, no license, doesn’t matter. Her stepmom thought she should get her license before heading to college “just in case” (because she could get license now without drivers ed) but when I learned what it would do to my insurance rates, that was the end of that.
Both my kids got their DL after graduating BS. They were just too busy both during the school year and summers. Our state doesn’t offer 1 week crash courses. We taught them how to drive, they self-studied the written exam and as soon as they turned 18 (that summer) they passed the driving and written part and didn’t need driver’s ed any longer. There are benefits to learning to drive at 18 as opposed to 16.
@doschicos: I wanted my kid to do it your way, too… I learned to drive at 22 ( grew up in NYC so no need) and I thought 16 was way too early. But D has a job during summers and school breaks and I was constantly having to rearrange my work schedule a bit in order to get her to work. So she got the instruction book to study for her permit as her 16th birthday gift. Once she got the permit, I gave her lessons during school breaks ( in our state they need 40 hours driving with a parent) and then she took the required 2 week driver Ed classroom part during the summer, along with the required driving school lessons. She got her junior license in October 2015. She’s a good, cautious driver and it has made our lives so much easier now that she can drive herself everywhere when she is not at school.
I’ve been wondering how to handle this. My husband forbade the kids from getting their licenses before age 17, which they will be by this summer. Transportation to summer jobs has been an issue, but getting licenses this summer might not be soon enough to help with that. Also, we live in a town that has a few jobs available within walking distance, if the kids will be proactive and start working on getting them. It might be simplest for the kids to wait until 18 and then just get licenses ASAP.
ChoatieKid wanted his license yesterday. We taught him to drive (must confess, started giving him lessons in an abandoned parking lot at 14 just because he thought it was so much fun). He got his permit about ten minutes after he was eligible (or so it seemed), and we let him drive every time we got into the car, including an 800-mile round trip to LA. He easily racked up the requisite driving hours for his license which he also got about five minutes after he was eligible.
However – the problem boarders have with driving is that they do not get the contiguous driving practice that local kids get. There are long breaks between visits home and those visits are short as far as providing sound and varied supervised experience go. For a while, each time behind the wheel is a bit of a “first” again. I was not completely comfortable with CK driving alone until after he graduated from BS, although he did not share my concerns. He will be learning to drive a tank soon.
FWIW, when the kids DO get their permits, it helps for them to log in as much time behind the wheel with you in the car as your parental nerves can handle. You will be positively shocked at what is instinctive for you, as a driver of decades, that doesn’t even cross the mind of a new driver. Some of the more notable ones in our case involved deer in the road (nope, they don’t just step aside when they see you coming) and passing cyclists (yes, you want to give them a wide berth but you might want to think about oncoming traffic as well).
So if you manage a fast-track approach (@twinsmama, I’m talking to you!!) , you’ll be nervous if you send them off by themselves into situations where you know they don’t have a lot of experience, such as driving on a freeway or in a city. I’d opt for getting those permits at the beginning of the summer and having them do the drive back and forth to school, to the shore, to jobs, to the supermarket, whatever – while you’re there to provide counsel.
“deer in the road (nope, they don’t just step aside when they see you coming)”
We have a lot of deer in our area. One tidbit of wisdom to pass along to the kids was that if you see one crossing the road, wait a bit because they are seldom alone and more will often follow.
We live in VA. Here you must have your permit for 9 months before you can get your license, no earlier than 16.5. So, DS took his 2-week course 6 hours a day) last summer at a local private school, through a firm that uses retired cops as instructors. After the 2-week course, and if you have your learners permit, then you take 7 behind the wheel sessions (100 mins each), also with the retired cops. In our state, permitted drivers must also have a min 45 hours of driving with parents (15 of which are after dark). Even though he took the course last summer and is on lesson #5 of behind the wheel, and has driven with us on every break, it has been hard to get to 45 hours of driving with us, given how infrequently he is home during the year. As of today, he’s at 37 hours, with 7 at night. His goal is to finish the hours in March over spring break, if he doesn’t get it done this week. Then, he takes the road test and we have to sign an affidavit attesting to the 45 hours, and he has to go before a judge. It is serious stuff.
Many public schools no longer have drivers ed. I would wait. Then they can go from the class to practicing with you.
I know someone who got DL in VA just by taking the written exam. No driving test at all. Was this because the person was 18? @hellomaisy
DS1 got his permit as soon as he was eligible but did not get a license yet. We should have waited he turns 18, this summer.
DS2 just wants a self-driving car and does not want to learn how to drive.
We will wait till he turns 18.
DS took drivers ed class just after 16 and got his permit then and took driving lessons too. He was 18 when he got his license (a week before his permit expired). But he drives infrequently so still has some to learn.
@doschicos, not sure. The VA DMV seems to indicate that if you’ve never held a license before, regardless of age, you take the knowledge and road tests. However, he the person held a license in another state, then the road test isn’t necessary. https://www.dmv.virginia.gov/drivers/#eligibility.asp
MIne took the classroom portion online, did the 6 or 8 hours of driving instruction last year (WOW! 2015!) over Thanksgiving break, and is old enough to get his license, but doesn’t have the required hours driving logged yet. When he comes home, he’s to busy doing other stuff (read:sleeping) to go out driving with mom and dad, and we can’t let he drive when we go to him because Indiana permits are not valid in the commonwealth. Oh, well. I will come soon enough.